GRAND CHUTE - Criminal charges will not be filed against the Grand Chute officers involved in a shooting July 23 outside Pawn America, Outagamie County District Attorney Carrie Schneider announced Friday.

Schneider said officers Benjamin Hanson and James Shepherd were justified in firing 26 rounds at a suspect who had stolen a police car following a confrontation in the parking lot outside of Pawn America, an area located at a busy intersection with a movie theater across the street.

The theft of the police car was part of a crime spree that began with a routine shoplifting call and involved a carjacking of a second vehicle and a high-speed chase on Interstate 41.

In about 14 seconds, Michael J. Lawrenz, a 36-year-old Sheboygan man, gained access to a police car, reversed the car, slammed into another police car and fled the parking lot.

Hanson and Shepherd fired 26 rounds at the stolen car in a span of six to seven seconds, Schneider said. Twenty-one holes were found in the police car, which had an AR-15 inside and a police dog in the back compartment. She said the officers continued to fire until the car was about 25 yards away.

"I've concluded that the actions of both officers were appropriate," she said.

It was part of a series of incidents that began earlier in the day with a car theft in Manitowoc and a retail theft in Neenah, police said.

Shortly before 5:30 p.m. Saturday, Neenah police responded to a Kohl's department store to investigate a retail theft. Neenah Police Chief Kevin Wilkinson said a man stole a camera and two speakers valued at more than $1,000. He triggered an alarm as he exited the store.

Grand Chute police officer Shawn Enneper went to Pawn America about 6:30 p.m. following an attempt-to-locate broadcast about the Neenah theft and a stolen vehicle.

As he arrived, Enneper saw Lawrenz near a vehicle. Lawrenz then went into an area behind bushes of the vehicle near the entrance of the store, Schneider said.

"This struck Officer Enneper as something that was suspicious in nature," she said. Enneper then approached Lawrenz.

Over the next 17 minutes, Enneper spoke with Lawrenz, who did not identify himself. Enneper then called Lt. Todd Zolkowski to the scene, Schneider said. Shepherd assisted Enneper, and the two officers spoke with Lawrenz.

Once Zolkowski arrived, he positioned his vehicle about 6 to 8 feet behind Enneper's car, Schneider said. Zolkowski then focused his attention on trying to identify Lawrenz, and Enneper walked toward other officers who had arrived on scene, including Hanson.

Shepherd and Lawrenz stayed by Enneper's vehicle, Schneider said, and Lawrenz began to position himself against the driver's side door of the car. He was not handcuffed.

"They were still trying to identify him," Schneider said about Lawrenz not being handcuffed. "He had done nothing leading up to this where had posted a threat, where he was taking any kind of stance or position."

About 10 seconds after Enneper walked away, Lawrenz opened the door, entered the vehicle and shut the door. The door then opened, and Zolkowski, Shepherd and Enneper attempted to stop Lawrenz from leaving with the car.

Shepherd drew a taser but it was ineffective, Schneider said.

Lawrenz then put the car in reverse and struck Zolkowski's car, knocking Zolkowski to the ground. Schneider said Zolkowski was partly underneath the vehicle, and Shepherd and Hanson were in front of the car. Lawrenz then put the car into drive.

"Fearing that their lives were in immediate danger and consistent with their training, both officers began firing their weapons into the squad car, aiming to stop Lawrenz and the threat he had created," Schneider said. Zolkowski was treated for a shoulder injury, but the full extent of his injury is unknown, police said Friday.

Hanson and Shepherd then fired "multiple shots" into the car. The officers continued to fire into the car as it drove past, out of the parking lot and to North Westhill Boulevard. Schneider said Lawrenz was shot in the left bicep and left shoulder, and the bullets were recovered.

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Grand Chute Police Department officer Shawn Enneper is joined by his dog Fram as he listens to Outagamie County District Attorney Carrie Schneider discusses the investigation findings of an officer involved shooting during a press conference Friday, July 29, at the Grand Chute Fire Station #1 in Grand Chute, Wisconsin.(Photo: Dan Powers/USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin)

"Officers are not trained to shoot someone in the shoulder, shoot out a tire of a car as it's driving away," she said. "The training is that officers, when faced with a deadly attack, are trained to end the threat. There is no opportunity to fire once, wait and see how the person responds, see if they stop and then react and fire again."

After driving at speeds of 100 mph, Lawrenz abandoned the police car and carjacked a vehicle from a woman on Fourth Street near Outagamie Street in Appleton. The woman wasn't hurt and was left at the scene. The police dog was found uninjured inside the police car.

The Brown County Sheriff's Department arrested Lawrenz at 7:20 p.m. on I-41 near Freedom Road after a three-mile chase. The stolen vehicle was later found across the street at Tom's Drive In.

Lawrenz was charged on Tuesday with multiple felony and misdemeanor charges, including robbery with use of force, operating a motor vehicle without owner's consent, criminal damage to property, attempted escape, resisting an officer and disorderly conduct. Court Commissioner Brian Figy set a $500,000 cash bond. His preliminary hearing is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. Wednesday.

During the officers' encounter with Lawrenz, Brian A. Hoffman, 25, of Manitowoc, was inside the store. He did not have any interaction with officers in the parking lot, police said.

Hoffman was later arrested in Calumet County after he tried to take a cab back to Manitowoc. He appeared in court Monday on a felony charge of stealing his father's car in Manitowoc. He was being held on a $10,000 cash bond. His case is scheduled for a preliminary hearing at 10 a.m. Wednesday.

According to court records, Hoffman's father reported that his car was missing from his Manitowoc home and that he suspected his son was responsible. The elder Hoffman told police that someone had eaten food during the night and taken cigarettes, alcohol, cash and a spare key to the car.

The car was equipped with OnStar, which can track a vehicle's location, but police found that the service had been disabled. Hoffman later told his father that Lawrenz disabled the OnStar system, records say.

"In my 19 years at the district attorney's office, we have never encountered a situation where a person entered and drove away in a squad car when officers were just 5 feet away," Schneider said.

Schneider said she will begin her review into whether charges will be filed against Lawrenz relating to the incidents in Grand Chute. Because of this, she said no video or reports are available.

She added that Winnebago County will pursue charges against both Lawrenz and Hoffman and that Brown County will review the I-41 chase.

Grand Chute Police Chief Greg Peterson said both Hanson and Shepherd remain on administrative leave, standard protocol following a police shooting. He said the officers will remain off-duty until they speak with a counselor.

"The officers have extensive training in tactical response, in firearms, in defensive tactics, in dealing with hostile individuals," Peterson said. Peterson said the officers' actions reflected the training.

Hanson, a field training officer, has worked for Grand Chute police for two years. He was previously employed for five years by the Grand Chute Fire Department. Shepherd, who served with the National Guard for seven years, has worked for the police department for seven months.

Schneider defended the decision for Appleton police, rather than the Wisconsin Department of Justice or another agency, to handle the investigation into the shooting.

"If at any point anybody on this review team had a relationship with the officers who ultimately fired, they would have excused themselves from the review," she said. "They have to make that kind of assessment as they go."